Lock for a glass door

ABSTRACT

A lock mechanism for a door comprises one or more lock cylinders which are mounted on opposite sides of the door and which are connected through the door to actuate a common lever in response to appropriate movement of the tabs on the backs of the lock cylinders. The lever locks or unlocks the door by advancing or retracting vertically one or more bolts. Ball bearings are used throughout to reduce friction.

[451 June 20, 1972 United States Patent Horgan, Jr.

[54] LOCK FOR A GLASS noon 3,538,724 11/1970Dauenbaugh....L...............

2,349,301 5/1944 Overby..........

Allegheny 2,327 071 8/1943 Schlage.... Pa.

[72] Inventor:

1,256,992 2/1918 Edgar et a1.. 2,116,001 5/1938 Schlage..........2,095,902 10/1937 Anderson et a1... 3,298,729 1/1967 [73] Assi'gnee:Blumcralt of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa.

[22] Filed: 7 Nov. 4, 1970 Russell et al.

[21] Appl.No.: 86,863

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 684,825 12/1952 Great 216,220 3/ 1 958Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation-impart of Ser. No.21,257, March 20,

.70/134 Australia 1970, abandoned.

Primary Examiner-Albert G. Craig, Jr. AttomeyPau1 & Paul ABSTRACT [51]Int. [58] Field of A lock mechanism for a door comprises one or morelock cylinders which are mounted on opposite sides of the door and whichare connected through the door to actuate a common DIG. 56, DIG. 57

lever in response to appropriate movement of the tabs on the backs ofthe lock cylinders. The lever locks or unlocks the door by advancing orretracting vertically one or more bolts. Ball bearings are usedthroughout to reduce friction.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,772,554 1211956 Schacht 2Claims, 4 Drawing gum 4 PHI lllanillii flllllllllrndltllitillllIII: 1|

SHEET 10F 2 IO/ W333:

/INVENTOR.

William J.Horq0n,Jr.

BY MY M ATTORNEYS CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION Thisapplication is a continuation-in-part of my prior copending applicationSer. No. 21,257 filed Mar. 20, 1970, now abandoned, and discloses andclaims in part the subject matter disclosed and claimed in thatapplication.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to locks,particularly locks adapted for use with glass doors, and moreparticularly, to locks of the type having vertically operative bolts.These bolt locks operate by driving the bolts vertically into thestructure surrounding the door to lock the door and retracting the boltsinto a lock housing to unlock the door.

In the prior art such bolt mechanisms were generally disposed within thedoor frame itself. With solid glass doors this is practically impossibleunless the door frame supporting the glass is bulky enough toaccommodate the bolt mechanism. Further, the heavy bolts were difficultto actuate.

l have developed a number of lock mechanisms utilizing lock housingsmounted on the plane surface of a glass door intermediate the verticaledges of the door, and preferably having a lock cylinder on both sidesof the door. The lock mechanism is readily operable by-means of a singlekey in a lock cylinder.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the preferred embodiment, my inventioncomprises a plural cylinder lock mechanism which can be mounted inwardlyfrom the extreme vertical edge of the door. One of the lock cylinders isconnected through a hole in the door to a bolt mechanism. The othercylinder is connected through the lock housing to the same boltmechanism, which includes a common lever for pivotal movement inresponse to appropriate movement of either one of the lock cylinders.The lever in turn actuates the bolt mechanism to extend or retractvertically one or more bolts for locking and unlocking the doorrespectively. The lever, bolts and other parts of the mechanism includebearings to make their operation smoother and easier.

Accordingly, it is an object of my invention to provide a new and novellock mechanism for use particularly with glass doors.

It is another object of my invention to provide a new vertical bolt lockmechanism for glass doors, which need not be mounted in the frame of thedoor.

It is a further object to provide a vertical bolt mechanism of the typedescribed which provides a means for mounting the lock cylinders so thatthe entire lock mechanism housing can be utilized to better advantagefrom a design standpoint.

It is a further object to provide a readily operable vertical boltmechanism which can be easily manually actuated by means of a single keyin a lock cylinder.

These and other objects of my invention will become apparent from thefollowing description with reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of aglass door having associated therewith handles and a lock housing of atype using vertical bolts;

FIG. 2 is a foreshortened enlarged section taken as indicated by thelines and arrows 22 in FIG. 1 showing the bolt mechanism in extendedposition so that the bolts are disposed in the structure surrounding thedoor;

FIG. 3 is a greatly enlarged sectional view partially broken awayshowing a portion of the mechanism shown in FIG. 2 in an alternateposition with the bolts retracted; and

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken as indicated by the lines and arrows4-4 in FIG. 3.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Although specific forms of theinvention have been selected for illustration in the drawings, and thefollowing description is drawn in specific terms for the purpose ofdescribing these forms of the invention, this description is notintended to limit the scope of the invention which is defined in theappended claims.

Referring to FIG. 1, a glass door 10 includes a glass panel without anyframe. I have provided a lock mechanism of the vertical bolt type whichin this embodiment comprises a plurality of housings designatedgenerally 14 and 16. The housings are oppositely disposed on either sideof the glass door spaced intermediate the vertical edges thereof and areintegrated with the handles 15 and 17 respectively.

In this embodiment the housing 16 serves as a means for mounting onelock cylinder 18, FIGS. 3 and 4. The tab 12 of the cylinder 18 operatesin a plane which is parallel to the vertical face 11 of the door. Thelock cylinder 18 passes through a hole 24in the glass door 10.

The housing 14 is composed of a plurality of members interconnected toform a rigid unified structure including thehandle 15. The entirehousing 14 is fixedly connected to the door and to the housing 16 in anysuitable manner, such as, by bolts (as at for example 13, FIG. 4). Thehousing 14 comprises a rigid channel shaped member 21 which isinterfitted with a cover 23. The housing 14 contains the vertical boltlock mechanism and a lock cylinder 20.

To actuate the bolts I have provided a pivotally mounted lever meanswhich cooperates with the rotating tabs on the lock cylinders. Thislever means comprises a pivot arm 60 which is pivotally mounted at oneend to a bracket 62 by means of a spring pin 64 passing through thebracket and the pivot arm. The bracket is held in place in the housingby any suitable means such as the screw 66 passing through the portion21. The bracket 62 extends across the width of the channel formedbetween the side walls of the portion 21 and terminates in a relievedchannel-shaped portion 68 which supports a T-shaped insert 70. Theinsert is preferably made of a hard rubber material such as Butylrubber.

The pivot arm 60 is pivotable about the pin 64. Extending from oppositefaces of the pivot arm 60 are pairs of cylindrical coaxial lugs 72, 73,74 and 75. The lugs are engaged by the tabs of the lock cylinders asthey rotate either clockwise or counterclockwise to lock or unlock thedoor. For example, in order to pivot the pivot arm 60 in a clockwisedirection when viewed as in FIG. 3 (to lock the door by extending thebolts) it is necessary to rotate the tab 12 of the locking cylinder 18in a counterclockwise direction so that it engages the lug 74 and, as itcontinues to rotate in a counterclockwise direction, pushes the lug 74in a clockwise direction about the spring pin 64. Ifthe direction ofrotation of the tab 12 were reversed, the tab 12 would pass the lug 74and'engage the lug 75 thereby pivoting the pivot arm 60 in acounterclockwise direction about the spring pin 64.

Similarly a counterclockwise rotation of the tab 19 on the lock cylinder20 would cause the tab to engage the lug 72 when'the mechanism is in theposition shown in FIG. 3 and move the pivot arm 60 to the right.Reversing the directional rotation of the tab 19 would cause it to passthe lug 72 and engage the lug 73 thereby moving the pivot arm 60 to theleft back to its position as shown in FIG. 3.

The pivotal movement of the pivot arm 60 actuates the bolt mechanism.This mechanism comprises most preferably a plurality of bolts which arevertically mounted to extend into the structure (200 FIG. 2) surroundingthe door and to be retracted within the lock housing. In the embodimentshown the upper locking bolt comprises a square bolt 80. The lower endof the bolt terminates in a yoke having a bar 82 pivotally connectedthereto by the pin 81.

In accordance with the present invention I have provided a means wherebythe bolt mechanism is made considerably easier to operate. This meanscomprises a plurality of bearings attached to the bolt. It is preferableto have four such bearings, as at 83, 84, 85 and 86 disposed on oppositesides of the bolt 80 and proximate to the ends thereof. The bearings arepreferably ball bearings and are retained on the bolt by means of guidepins 86 which pass through and engage the inner races of the bearingsand are fixedly engaged in holes in the bolt 80. It is preferable tohave washers 87 disposed between the vertical edges of bolt 80 and theball bearings.

The bearings ride in the web of the channel portion 21 and on a shimspring 88 which is mounted in the web. The shim spring is a thin stripof material such as a 302 stainless steel strip preferably on the orderof 0.015 inches thick and includes two vertically extending legs whichare slightly bowed to provide a spring action and prevents rattling. Thespring may be held in place in any suitable manner such as by tabsextending therefrom into supporting holes as shown.

Spacer blocks 89 are used to maintain the bolt 80 in vertical alignmentin the housing.

I have found that this arrangement considerably. reduces the frictionalresistance to movement of the bolt and in part provides an effectivemeans for raising and lowering the bolt by the use of a single key andlock cylinder. The remaining linkage for accomplishing this result inresponse to pivotal movement of the pivot arm 60 comprises a link 100which is pivotally mounted intermediate the ends thereof to a bracket102 by means of a pin 104. The bracket is held in fixed position in thehousing by any suitable means such as screws (not shown) passing throughthe depending walls of the member 21. The link 100 is pivotallyconnected at one end to the bar 82 by the pin 108 and is pivotallyconnected at the other end to the bar 110 by the pin 112. The bar 110 ispivotally connected to a slide plate assembly designated generally 1 14.

The slide plate assembly comprises two flat plates 116 and 118 which areheld in spaced relation by means of a spacer 120. The spacer is fixedbetween the plates in any suitable manner as by riveting. The bar 110 ispivotally engaged with the upper end of the slide plate assembly as bymeans of the rivet 122. The slide plate assembly also includes bearingswhich will be more fully described herein after in connection with thefunction of the plate and its movement in the housing.

The slide plate assembly provides a means for engaging the pivot arm 60whereby on appropriate movement of the pivot arm the slide plateassembly is raised or lowered vertically in order to raise or lower thebolt 80. This means comprises a cam and follower mechanism associatedwith the slide plate assembly and the pivot arm. The spacer 120 providesthe cam surface 130 which is flat and is disposed on an angle to thevertical line of movement of the locking bolts. The cam surface 130 isengaged by a portion of the pivot arm 60. This portion comprises mostpreferably a ball bearing 132 held for rotation in the yoked end of thepivot arm 60 by means of a lock pin 134. The lock pin 134 extends beyondboth sides of the yoked portion of the pivot arm 60 as clearly shown inFIG. 4 for reasons which will be more fully explained hereinafter. Asthe pivot arm 60 is rotated from the position shown in FIG. 3 to theposition shown in FIG. 2 the surface of the ball bearing 132 will engagethe surface 130 of the cam of the spacer 120 and as the bearingcontinues to rotate in a clockwise direction when viewed as in FIG. 3the slide assembly 1 14 will be pulled vertically downwardly by gravityin the lock housing thereby forcing the locking bolt 80 to be extendedfrom the housing to the position shown in FIG. 2. On counter rotation ofthe pivot arm 60 the assembly will be forced upwardly in the housingthereby retracting the bolt 80.

The plates 1 l6 and 118 have similar S-shaped slots 136 and 138respectively therein. The extending ends of the pin 134 are disposed inthese slots as shown in FIG. 4. The slots are so shaped that the ends ofthe pin 134 basically ride substantially in the center of the slotthroughout the entire travel of the pivot arm. The principal function ofthe end of the pin is to prevent the opening of the mechanism when it isin the closed position asshown in FIG. 2 by other than a key actuatingthe pivot arm 60. Thus, if one were to push downwardly on. the bolt inan attempt to raise the rod and the assembly 114, the lower portion ofthe right hand terminal end of the S- shaped slots would engage the pin134 after perhaps less than one-eighth inch of travel and prevent themechanism from being jirnmied opened. At the other end of the slot thepins do not engage the upper or lower ends of the S-shaped slots and theball bearing 132 passes slightly over center of the comer of the spaceras it leaves the surface 130. This overcenter action prevents themechanism from accidentally extending the bolts when they are retracted.

When the mechanism is in the position shown in FIG. 2 the assembly restson the upper cross member of the T-shaped insert 70 which, as previouslystated, is preferably made of a hard rubber material. This has theeflect of deadening the sound and positively stopping the action of theassembly.

The operation of the device requires minimal effort to move the slideplate assembly by virtue of the fact that the asembly is mounted formovement on ball bearings. Four such bearings are shown in FIG. 3. Eachof the bearings is mounted between axial spacer elements such as washersbetween the plates 116 and 118 so that they are freely rotatable abouttheir axes. The bearings along the left hand side of the slide plateassembly when viewed as in FIG. 3 bear against the depending side of themember 21. The bearings along the right hand side bear against blocks152 and 153 of preferably hard rubber material such as Butyl rubber. Theblocks are fastened to the inner side of the depending wall of themember 21 and are preferably attached thereto by any suitable means suchas a pressure sensitive backing for bonding to aluminum. The blocks ofrubber not only serve as a bearing surface for the ball bearings to rollupon, but also serve to contain the entire slide plate assembly and toforce the bearings on the left hand side against the member 21 asaforesaid. The blocks while hard are nevertheless resilient and providefor easy, quiet action of the mechanism.

The lower dead bolt portion of the mechanism is exactly the same as theupper dead bolt portion and the connecting rods are also exactly thesame with the exception that there is no need for a link such as thelink 100 or for a bracket such as the bracket 102. Rather the lower boltis pivotally connected to a bar 182 by means of a pin 181 and the bar isdirectly pivotally connected to the lower end of the slide plateassembly 114 by means of the pin 183. The entire arrangement otherwiseis exactly the same and consists of four ball bearings and four spacerblocks and a shim spring all arranged as described in relation to thebolt 80.

. Thus, as the slide plate assembly is moved upwardly as the pivot arm60 rotates to the left from the position shown in FIG. 3, the bolt 180is retracted as is the bolt 80, and likewise when the pivot arm is movedback to the right to the position shown in FIG. 2 the slide plateassembly moves downwardly thereby extending the bolt 180 and throughactuation of the link 100 extending the bolt 80, thereby locking thedoor.

It will be noted that in my prior copending application referred toabove the mechanism shown included a counterbalancing spring. No suchspring is required for the mechanism shown in this application, sincefriction has been reduced to a minimum at all points of contact and inactual practice simple rotation of a key in a lock cylinder will causethe mechanism to be actuated either to extend or retract the lock'boltswith a minimal manual efi'ort.

It will be understood that various changes in the details, materials andarrangement of parts which have been described and illustrated in orderto explain the nature of this invention,

may be made by those skilled in the art within the principle and scopeof the invention as expressed in the appended claims. In particular, itwill be understood that the device can work with a single lock cylindereither mounted on the lock housing or mounted through the door. Further,it will be understood that the device can work with a single lockingbolt either at the top or a dead bolt at the bottom.

It will further be understood that the Abstract of the Disclosure setforth above is intended to provide a non-legal technical statement ofthe contents of the disclosure in compliance with the Rules of Practiceof the United States Patent Office, and is not intended to limit thescope of the invention described and claimed herein.

What is claimed is:

l. A lock mechanism for a door, comprising:

a. lock cylinder means having a movable locking tab connected thereto;

b. a pivot arm pivotable about a fulcrum;

c. means connected to said pivot arm and engageable by said locking tabto pivot said pivot arm in response to movement of said locking tab; and

d. locking bolt means comprising at least one lock bolt connected to aslide assembly movable in response to pivotal movement of said pivot armfor extending or retracting said lock bolt with respect to saidmechanism to a locking or unlocked condition respectively; said slideassembly comprising a plurality of plates fixedly spaced with respect toone another, said plates having substantially S- shaped aperturestherein, and pin means extending from said pivot arm and into saidapertures, said pin means being so positioned with respect to saidapertures as to provide a means for positively preventing said slidemeans from moving when said slide means and the pivot arm are in apredetermined relationship whereby said mechanism is prevented frombeing unlocked without appropriate movement of the pivot arm.

2. The invention of claim 1 wherein the movement of said slide assemblyin response to movement of said pivot arm is accomplished through a cammeans disposed therebetween, said cam means providing a means to preventthe mechanism from accidently extending the lock bolt when it isretracted in the unlocked condition, comprising a positive stop toprevent actuation of the cam means without appropriate movement of thepivot arm.

1. A lock mechanism for a door, comprising: a. lock cylinder meanshaving a movable locking tab connected thereto; b. a pivot arm pivotableabout a fulcrum; c. means connected to said pivot arm and engageable bysaid locking tab to pivot said pivot arm in response to movement of saidlocking tab; and d. locking bolt means comprising at least one lock boltconnected to a slide assembly movable in response to pivotal movement ofsaid pivot arm for extending or retracting said lock bolt with respectto said mechanism to a locking or unlocked condition respectively; saidslide assembly comprising a plurality of plates fixedly spaced withrespect to one another, said plates having substantially S-shapedapertures therein, and pin means extending from said pivot arm and intosaid apertures, said pin means being so positioned with respect to saidapertures as to provide a means for positively preventing said slidemeans from moving when said slide means and the pivot arm are in apredetermined relationship whereby said mechanism is prevented frombeing unlocked without appropriate movement of the pivot arm.
 2. Theinvention of claim 1 wherein the movement of said slide assembly inresponse to movement of said pivot arm is accomplished through a cammeans disposed therebetween, said cam means providing a means to preventthe mechanism from accidently extending the lock bolt when it isretracted in the unlocked condition, comprising a positive stop toprevent actuation of the cam means without appropriate movement of thepivot arm.